The 62nd Paris International Agricultural Show opened without cattle and with a president kept at arm’s length. A strange atmosphere filled the aisles of the Parc des Expositions at Porte de Versailles in Paris’s 15th arrondissement on Saturday, February 21. For the inauguration of his eighth show as president, Emmanuel Macron found himself at the crossroads of urgent domestic and international issues, as well as facing fierce criticism from agricultural unions deeply dissatisfied with his leadership, all under a tight police presence.
Arriving at around 8:30 am, Macron made a beeline for the show’s mascot cow, Biguine, a Brahman from Martinique. But this year, it was only a hologram. An outbreak of lumpy skin disease had forced the cancellation of this emblematic section of the show, where cows and oxen usually mingle with throngs of curious visitors. Fearing contagion, breeders had opted out of the parade.
“It’s dismal – there’s no smell of cows, no sounds,” lamented Stéphane Travert, centrist chair of the Assemblée Nationale’s Economic Affairs Committee. President Macron had urged the show’s organizers to maintain the presence of cattle in order to preserve the event’s agricultural spirit. To no avail. “We can be pleased that we are winning the fight against lumpy skin disease for good. Since the beginning of the year, there have been no new cases,” he said.
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